ICYMI fintech funding round-up: Sokin, Cedar Money, Ambak, and more
At FinTech Futures, we know that it can be easy to let funding announcements slip you by in this fast-paced industry. That’s why we put together our weekly In Case You Missed It (ICYMI) funding round-up so you can get the latest funding news.
Sokin secures $15m debt funding
UK-based business payments firm Sokin has landed $15 million in debt funding from funds and accounts managed by BlackRock.
The raise follows a $31 million investment from Morgan Stanley in July 2024, which the start-up claims has led to a 51% increase in account openings and a 130% boost in headcount.
Sokin, which offers enterprises worldwide the ability to “transfer, hold and exchange” more than 100 currencies via its multi-currency IBAN and local currency accounts, recently acquired a European electronic money institution (EMI) licence through the purchase of Norway’s Settle Group.
According to CEO and founder Vroon Modgill, the BlackRock funding will be used to “elevate our product offering, expand our international team, and break into new, untapped markets”. The firm intends to scale its workforce and establish offices in London, Dubai, New York, and Toronto.
Furaha, a lending platform operating across sub-Saharan Africa, has secured $10 million in funding from SC Ventures and Yabx Technologies Netherlands.
The investment includes $7 million from SC Ventures, Standard Chartered’s fintech investment arm, while Tech Mahindra’s Dutch subsidiary, Yabx Technologies, has assisted through a technology transfer.
Founded in 2023 and headquartered in UAE’s Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), Furaha will use the funding to support the launch of an educational financing offering.
The start-up has already begun offering loan products in Uganda through partnerships with SchPay, MTN MoMo, and Opportunity Bank, with plans to expand across Africa.
Cedar Money lands $9.9m
Cedar Money, a US-based cross-border paytech focused on emerging African markets, has bagged a $9.9 million Seed round led by QED Investors.
The round saw additional participation from Lattice, Stellar, North Island Ventures, and Wischoff Ventures.
Founded in 2022, Cedar Money’s platform, active in Nigeria, Kenya, and the Ivory Coast, leverages stablecoins to enable cross-border payments.
The firm claims its solution can handle large transactions, up to $30 million, and offers payouts in more than 130 countries worldwide.
According to a statement, Cedar Money says the financing will help “accelerate its mission of transforming international money flows using cutting-edge payment infrastructure”.
Ambak, a Gurugram-based Indian lendtech, has raised $7 million in Seed and pre-Series A funding.
The round was led by Peak XV Partners, with participation from Alluvium Capital, Advantedge VC, DeVC, and a group of unnamed angel investors.
Founded in 2023, Ambak specialises in home loan solutions, offering agents access to loan options from over 50 financial institutions on a single platform, which currently serves around 15,000 customers.
According to a report from Yourstory, the funds will be used to help Ambalk achieve its goal of $1 billion in loan disbursements by FY26, serve 100,000 customers annually, and expand its footprint to 35 cities.
Yavrio raises $2.4m Seed funding
UK-based open banking start-up Yavrio has landed $2.4 million in Seed funding to fuel the firm’s mission to “transform the enterprise resource planning (ERP) space by eradicating error- and fraud-prone CSV file imports”, as per a company statement.
Fuel Ventures, a London-headquartered venture capital firm, led the funding round with a $1.9 million commitment. The remaining $500,000 was contributed to by a consortium of angels, including Garth Ritchie, former president of Deutsche Bank, Dan Cobley, co-founder of ClearScore, and Sajid Javid, the former UK Chancellor of the Exchequer.
CEO John Lewis states that the funding “marks a pivotal moment for Yavrio as we move out of stealth mode and start scaling globally”.
Founded in 2022, Yavrio’s platform enables ERP-to-bank connectivity for enterprises, providing real-time financial insights and transaction capabilities. The firm claims to already be connected to over 10,000 banks across the UK, Europe, the US, and the Middle East.
NjiaPay, a start-up based in the Netherlands and South Africa, has bagged over $1 million in pre-Seed funding.
The round was led by South African VC HAVAÍC, with contributions from several angel investors, such as the founders of Anyfin, Banxware and Maxidrive.
Launched last year, NjiaPay is a new entity spun off from Talk360, an international calling app catering to the African global communities. The platform provides African businesses with Payments-as-a-Service (PaaS), featuring a unified checkout system with an integrated merchant portal.
Jonatan Allback, co-founder and CEO of NjiaPay, says the funds “will enable us to scale our team, both in Amsterdam and Cape Town, and further enhance our platform’s capabilities”.
With operations currently live in Kenya, Nigeria, and South Africa, the paytech intends to expand its footprint across the continent and grow its product offerings in 2025 by forming new partnerships with payment service providers (PSPs).
Serene lands £930,000
Serene, a London-based fintech aiming to improve how financial services “detect and support customers in vulnerable circumstances”, has secured £930,000 during a pre-Seed funding round led by Fuel Ventures.
The round saw additional participation from NatWest Group, Oxford Seed Fund, and a group of unnamed industry angels.
Launched last year, the start-up offers an AI-powered platform claiming to be the first Consumer Vulnerability Engine of its kind.
According to its website, the platform provides real-time and predictive customer insights driven by AI and behavioural science. It helps institutions to “identify hidden patterns of vulnerability”, providing a “holistic view of each customer’s financial health and potential challenges”.
Founder and CEO Savannah Price, explains the funding will be leveraged to “grow our team, enhance our technology and scale our platform to help even more organisations proactively support their customers”.
